Another home site found in Oklahoma~~1/2 mile from the old schoolhouse

[Charmin]

We finished up at the old schoolhouse site this week--didn't find much more except some buckles. So, we decided to drive further down into the big bottom(below the school and to the southeast), next to the creek and see if we could find anymore foundations. This whole area has been burned off and it is wonderful! You can see lots of places that looked like they were "terraced", a kinda series of levels rising one above the other, maybe for farming this bottom? I drew a map to show what it looks like(please don't make fun at my map drawing skills ). We found another house foundation, cellar hole, well and barn foundation!!!! These are about 1/2 mile from the school. You can stand at this house foundation and look up the hill and see where the school sat. The kids that lived here didn't have far to walk!!

We started detecting near the house foundation. We found 2 spoons, talcum powder tops, lids, a lantern part(C.T. Ham MFG. Co., Rochester N.Y., U.S.A., No. 2 17 & 20, Cold Blast)(anyone know a date on this?), a little brass tag? that has the number 116 on it, a pocket watch back, pocket knife, harmonica reeds, a round concho thingy? that is a dished out shaped, a piece of aluminum with a stamped floral design, a brass plate thing(maybe for a door lock?)(we thought at first it was a heel plate, but noticed the key hole on it), a part of a hotel token made of aluminum(this was found by my daughter and in the same hole as the door part, she also found a piece of a porcelain doll leg and buckle in this hole) and three other concho/horse bridle pieces. Next we moved out by the cellar, but nothing was found here except aluminum jar lids. So, out by the barn we went and began finding old plow pieces, a double bitted axe head, a pick axe head, and horse/mule shoes. There is a run-off draw or feeder creek that runs parallel with the barn and its banks are littered with pieces of old farming equipment. We stopped metal detecting and started walking along the banks of this little creek and I found an old wagon wheel!! It was half-way buried and we had to get the shovels to dig it up. Now I have another yard ornament!
This is going to be another good place to detect! We haven't found any money, though and I don't know if we just haven't found the right spot or what! But this next week we'll be going back--the weather is supposed to be great and the temperature is going to be in the 70's/80's!! Here's the stuff we found and if anyone has info on what the "116" tag, round brass concho thingy, lantern part (date? of mfg.), or lock plate, please let me know! Anyway, here's my "treasures of darkness" and thanks for looking!!! sandcreek4

 

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[homer007]

AS FOR THE SNAKES , THROW A BOX OF MOTH BALLS IN THE HOLE .THEY CANT STAND THE SMELL

awsome finds, that place will keep you busy for a while.

Thanks lost at sea! sandcreek4

WOW !...how deep are those cellar holes??

Pretty darn deep, let me tell ya!! I'm not going to get down in there to find out-no telling what kinda varmits are living in it!! And with the weather being so mild, there's probably SNAKES . thank you for the comments, Mr. Jody! sandcreek4

 

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[Woodland Detectors]

Well I must say that is a very nice map! Indeed. The finds and photos aren't too bad either!

 

[rjw4law]

I love that wagon wheel, pretty exciting find.

 

[Charmin]

AS FOR THE SNAKES , THROW A BOX OF MOTH BALLS IN THE HOLE .THEY CANT STAND THE SMELL

awsome finds, that place will keep you busy for a while.

Thanks lost at sea! sandcreek4

WOW !...how deep are those cellar holes??

Pretty darn deep, let me tell ya!! I'm not going to get down in there to find out-no telling what kinda varmits are living in it!! And with the weather being so mild, there's probably SNAKES . thank you for the comments, Mr. Jody! sandcreek4

Thanks for that suggestion, homer007! I live out in the country and use moth balls around my house(and under it) to keep snakes back but never thought of putting some in that cellar hole! sandcreek4

Well I must say that is a very nice map! Indeed. The finds and photos aren't too bad either!

Thanks 4-H staff ! regards, sandcreek4

 

[Charmin]

I love that wagon wheel, pretty exciting find.

Yes, it was an exciting find--now if we can just find the other one ! Have a great Sunday, rjw4law! sandcreek4

 

[Monty]

The old cellar holes aren't usually much deeper than 6' or so but once they have caved in they usually are really good spots for snakes to den up. I've been in several and found several copper heads, so you have to be careful. Really great finds. I don't think I've ever seen an old home place that didn't have some harmonica reeds. Monty

 

[Charmin]

The old cellar holes aren't usually much deeper than 6' or so but once they have caved in they usually are really good spots for snakes to den up. I've been in several and found several copper heads, so you have to be careful. Really great finds. I don't think I've ever seen an old home place that didn't have some harmonica reeds. Monty

Thanks Monty! I think there's enough detecting for us to do around this spot without stirring up any copper-headed-rattle-moccasins !! And you're so right about the harmonica reeds--we've dug over twenty of these things on these last three old homesites! Have a great Sunday! kind regards, sandcreek4

 

[Monty]

Back in the homestead says there was no electricity, so some families had an old piano while others only had someone who could play the harmonica. I can just see the family sitting around the little two room house singing while the dad played the harmonica. Probably their only form of intertainment for days on end. They were very poor farmers, most of them, and couldn't afford anything more expensive. We had an old piano that was passed down to several generations in my family. Grandad had it in his farm house in a little town of about 300 people back during the depression. It was a prized possession. Monty

 

[Charmin]

Back in the homestead says there was no electricity, so some families had an old piano while others only had someone who could play the harmonica. I can just see the family sitting around the little two room house singing while the dad played the harmonica. Probably their only form of intertainment for days on end. They were very poor farmers, most of them, and couldn't afford anything more expensive. We had an old piano that was passed down to several generations in my family. Grandad had it in his farm house in a little town of about 300 people back during the depression. It was a prized possession. Monty

Yeah, I can just hear a harmonica echoing through this creek bottom where we've been detecting. And we found organ reeds up by the old schoolhouse that's about 1/2 mile from this site. If only these things could tell the story and answer my questions!! Like where's the MONEY !! We'l just have to keep pounding the ground, I guess. Thank you, as always Monty, for your comments! Have a great week in our BEAUTIFUL state of OKLAHOMA!! sandcreek4

 

[kuger]

Nice place!I am a student of picks,and we only seem to find that style of the one in your pic,in 1850-1860 ish sites although those dates are earlier than most of the other stuff you found.Great digs!!!

 

[sonny61]

Look for the outhouse and other outbuildings. Check for swings on the tree limbs. Should be a clothesline and a garden somewhere. Just some of the places I look.

 

[Charmin]

Look for the outhouse and other outbuildings. Check for swings on the tree limbs. Should be a clothesline and a garden somewhere. Just some of the places I look.

Thanks for that advice sonny61--if I were to look for an outhouse it would probably be north of the house, maybe? To cut back on the smell in the summertime? We haven't really checked under the old trees yet. One of the oldest trees(next to the barn foundation) has been struck by lightning and is split right down the middle, all the limbs just folded down. I might try around that one first because it was a HUGE tree and probably had been there a while. kind regards, sandcreek4

 

[Charmin]

Nice place!I am a student of picks,and we only seem to find that style of the one in your pic,in 1850-1860 ish sites although those dates are earlier than most of the other stuff you found.Great digs!!!

Hey kuger, by being "a student of picks" are you talking about pick-axes? I haven't cleaned the pick axe up yet, I guess I need to do that. That would be cool if it was as old as 1850-1860! Thank you for your comments! sandcreek4

 

[Slocan]

Great spot! I'd check the draw behind the barn for a dump site. Could be some great bottles!

 

[kuger]

Nice place!I am a student of picks,and we only seem to find that style of the one in your pic,in 1850-1860 ish sites although those dates are earlier than most of the other stuff you found.Great digs!!!

Hey kuger, by being "a student of picks" are you talking about pick-axes? I haven't cleaned the pick axe up yet, I guess I need to do that. That would be cool if it was as old as 1850-1860! Thank you for your comments! sandcreek4

Yes,sometimes you can find makers marks on them too,that really adds value to them and allows you to research them too.I hunt Gold Rush sites so we dig a lot of them.

 

[Monty]

Where's the money? They had none! Very few had much of anything. Monty

 

[crazyjarhead]

Nice survey and find. There should be some more stuff there waiting for you to find.

 

[Ohio Jerry]

Where's the money? They had none! Very few had much of anything. Monty

Nice display of relics and my compliments to the photographer! Monty is right,some of these poor farmers were scratching out a living,bartering for their goods and they really didn't have a lot of coins in their pockets to lose.The privy would have been on the downwind side of the property and that path between it and the cellarhole might have a coin or two.Also,make a bee line to that schoolhouse from the cellarhole and work that imaginary path over real well. The kids did carry pennys and they were bound to get a hole in their pockets once in a while Most important thing is have fun and enjoy every relic that comes back to the light of day,Jerry

 

[Ohio Jerry]

This piece is off a wood cookstove.If you clean out the area circled you will find a depression with a pin thru the center. There was a special handle for removing these lids so you could drop in a log to heat up your "burner"

 

[Charmin]

Nice survey and find. There should be some more stuff there waiting for you to find.

Thanks crazyjarhead! I hope there IS more stuff there! regards, sandcreek4

Where's the money? They had none! Very few had much of anything. Monty

Nice display of relics and my compliments to the photographer! Monty is right,some of these poor farmers were scratching out a living,bartering for their goods and they really didn't have a lot of coins in their pockets to lose.The privy would have been on the downwind side of the property and that path between it and the cellarhole might have a coin or two.Also,make a bee line to that schoolhouse from the cellarhole and work that imaginary path over real well. The kids did carry pennys and they were bound to get a hole in their pockets once in a while Most important thing is have fun and enjoy every relic that comes back to the light of day,Jerry

Thanks for the info, Jerry--we'll try your suggestions. I didn't mean to sound unhappy about our finds so far--I love digging relics of any kind and it is lots of fun for me and the kids! The first site(about 2 miles from this one) we detected had lots of old coins and I guess it just spoiled us! I think the people that lived on the first site were a little better off. There's still lots of ground to cover here and if I didn't find anything else but that wagon wheel, I'd still be happy . sandcreek4